


Better a Poor Rider on a Good Horse than a Good Rider on a Poor Horse

by spitshineboi



Category: Antiope/Menalippe - Fandom
Genre: Amazon sport, Amazons - Freeform, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-30
Updated: 2018-07-30
Packaged: 2019-06-19 01:15:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15499038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spitshineboi/pseuds/spitshineboi
Summary: I did some serious research on this sport and gökbörü is a real game played in many places around the world. You can actually view real games on youTube so check it out if you wish to as it's fascinating to watch!





	Better a Poor Rider on a Good Horse than a Good Rider on a Poor Horse

**Author's Note:**

> I did some serious research on this sport and gökbörü is a real game played in many places around the world. You can actually view real games on youTube so check it out if you wish to as it's fascinating to watch!

It was that time of year again, Hekatombaion (mid-June), and time for Aphrodesia, the festival honoring Aphrodite, and the annual horse fair and games. Besides the race at the end of the event there was dressage, archery from horseback, javelins, sagaris on horseback, etc. there was the big event, gökbörü or goat pulling. Every village and city on Themyscira had its team. There were trade teams, friendly teams, and Caupona teams. 

Prior to anything happening game-wise Antiope and Penthesilea, her cavalry ypolochagos, gets the low down on all the four-year-old horses on the island. They had traversed the island the year prior and perused the animals and now they ascertain each animals' skills and abilities and decide which will make good cavalry mounts. The horses are run through the stadium first, ten at a time, so that Antiope can see their general characteristics and gaits. They are then mounted and run through a basic course consisting of quick turns, jumps, and other obstacles and, finally, it is looked at how they handle themselves with different riders. It is then decided whether or not a particular horse is cavalry worth or saddle worth. Those deemed as riding horses are put in stables for anyone to use, cavalry mounts are placed in their own stables and riders are assigned new horses every four years or so. This can actually be done rather quickly and is usually finished after two days. 

During these days there are parties and a fair where all sorts of things are made and sold. There is a major arts festival with sculpture, paintings, gardens, musical events, and even plays are shown and played for the first time. It is very exciting. Friends get together every year and there are parties and assignations and first-time lovers and everything that goes with it. New clothes are worn and most everyone, except the military, has time off. It is surely a Carnivale!

But, despite the fun of the fair and the arts and the drama nothing really mattered save for one thing, gökbörü. This game was the thing of legends on Themiscyra. The players were the things of legend on Themiscyra. All-in-all it's a good thing as it gives the entire island something to focus on, something to cheer about, something to love. These competitions are a very minor form of warfare, something the Amazons are very good at. This competition took the place of war and helped alleviate fights and anger induced skirmishes. All a good thing. It had definitely been one of Hippolyta's smartest laws but, unlike Caesar's bread and circuses, the blood was only incidental. The game wasn't about blood, it was about skill, and skill always won out.

Everyone on the island, including Hippolyta, had played the game. Some were exceedingly better than others at it. Penthesilea, for one, was one of the finest players out there as was Menalippe, the two of them playing together had been outlawed because no one else had a chance if they were both on the same team. Penthesilea and Menalippe were the best of friends except when it came to this game. So Penthesilea played with the military team and Menalippe played for a caupona team called Dioxippe's Aigon or Goats. Once they were on different teams they became "enemies" on the field. Usually the finals were between the military and the Aigon. The winner was always a toss-up and it often wasn't either of these teams, though generally it was. 

Antiope was thrilled that her wife was so much better than she was at this game. It felt wonderful to cheer her on and to then reward her for the win later that night in bed. Of course, if she didn't win there was the "I'm sorry but you'll be better next time" sex. No matter what Antiope won. But, certainly, cheering her love on was one of the highlights of her year. She loved massaging Menalippe to get the kinks out of her body and, afterwards, just holding her close. Admittedly, she feigned not showing where her hopes lay with the games winners but it was best for moral if she did. Everyone knew she rooted for her wife.

Two days before the games started this year Antiope refused sex with her wife only holding her and kissing her. This was frustrating as it would be two weeks before the final game and she expected her Menalippe to be in and win the final game. Menalippe whined but Antiope was firm. "You must use your strength for these games my love. This will help."

"Hrmf," Menalippe replied. "I don't like this," as she cuddled with her wife.

The next day Menalippe found Penthesilea in indelecto flagrante on the practice field when she and Antiope arrived early.

"This is so NOT fair," Menalippe whined at Antiope.

"Ah well," was Antiope's only reply. She did stop Penthesilea and sent her and her lover home but that didn't do much good at all for Menalippe.

Menalippe missed most of her goal attempts the first game on the third day and blamed it on Antiope. The Aigon won but barely and the coach even yelled at Antiope for Menalippe's poor performance. Antiope, chagrinned, decided against helping her wife focus. Their lovemaking that evening was long, hard, very hard, and loud. The same the next morning. They both missed voluntary calisthenics that morning and, when they showed up to watch that day's game, they both looked ragged and tired. Menalippe's next game was completely different from the first. She was right on goal wise and looked calm and refreshed.

Finally, the final game arrived and, as expected, it was the Aigon vs. the Military. This would be a great game. 

As usual, the first step in the game was the killing of the goat. It was sacrificed to Hermes, God of Athletes, the day before the game. Afterwards, it was degutted and had its head removed and it was then kept in water overnight. Finally, on the morning of the meet it was stuffed with straw and stitched carefully closed. The game piece was ready! The pitch for the game was huge. It encompassed the entire parade grounds and there was plenty of seating for anyone to watch. The field was broken up into halves with a circle in the center of the field. Two-thirds of the way into either half of the field was the circular scoring pit or Kÿklos. They were made round and the sides raised up about three feet around a six-foot diameter circular hole. They were well made wooden eighth pieces of said circle that covered straw bales so that there was no give. They were plastered together for strength. The outer sides were not 90 degrees from the edge of the circle but formed a 30 degrees slope from the top of the structure to the ground. To protect the horses the tops of these rings were flat and three feet wide. These rings were strong and could easily have a horse standing on them. All to protect the horse. On the far side of each kÿklos was a flag or simaía around which an opponent had to race with the goat before being able to score on the other side of the field.

The riders, well, they had to protect themselves too. They wore helmets. Menalippe's was a heavy leather Scythian helmet with goat horns and a purple plume. It had a heavy leather face mask over her mouth. She wore over-the-knee leather greaves, leather cuirass, and, like each player, carried a whip, both to fend off opposing horses and riders. Even her bracers were beautifully worked leather. She wore a long sleeved purple tunic, matching her plume, that came just above her knees and leather breeches that went into her greaves. All perfectly legal. All somewhat brutal. All-in-all a good uniform.

Gökbörü means the grey wolf. Obviously, at one time the Amazons hunted grey wolves and this game came from that. The game itself was long, lasting over two hours. There was one fifteen-minute break half way through the game. There were fifteen players per team with only ten playing at a time. The five extra would come in when members of the primary team got tired or needed to talk with their coach. No time outs were allowed.

Barbeques had been set up around the pitch to grill goat meat and vegetables for the viewers of the game. The nice thing was that the winning team got to eat the game piece which, due to the game itself, was tender and tasty. All excellent. The fact that there was nothing wasted in the game made it even better.

The game finally started when the referees rode out onto the field followed rather quickly by the teams. As it was the finals Hippolyta gave a speech extolling the strength of the players and comparing them to Themiscyra itself. When done members of her personal guard rode through with flags of all the teams that had played this year and, finally, the captains of the two teams, Penthesilea and Menalippe, rode in carrying their flags. They set them up next to the field and rode to their teams. All very nice and pretty. It certainly got the crowd excited as it was intended to do. Finally, the two referees came out to the middle of the field, one carrying the headless goat which was dropped at the center of the field. 

The best scrummers from each team, again the captains, rode out to the edges of the small circle (about a twenty-foot radius) and, once the whistle was blown, they rode quickly to the goat and started to try to slide their body's around their horses to reach the goat. The other nine players of each team tried to do the same. It was a definite scrum. Eventually Penthesilea broke free with the goat dangling next to her body by a hoof. Two of the Aigon trailing extremely close with her trying to rip the goat from her hand which they did after about forty feet. Another scrum ensued and one of the Aigon got the goat but this didn't last long either. Penthesilea got the goat again and raced behind her own goal to clear the goat at her flag and then sprinted her horse towards her goal whip flying at anyone who got near. She tried to make the goal surrounded by Aigon and threw herself and the goat at the goal. She made it! Score one to zero! This went on again and again until the score was a respectable six to seven with the Aigon winning. The fact that every time someone got the goat they were attacked by others trying to get the goat made this sport highly competitive. 

Then half time was called. As it was the finals this was a big thing and, after cheering and all, the winners of all the other contests were announced and paid their accolades and received their laurel wreaths. During this time Antiope made her way onto the field and leapt into Menalippe's lap where they kissed voraciously. As the last winner was announced Antiope quickly left the field, along with the other wives and girlfriends, in preparation for the second half.

If anything, the second was more frenetic than the first as players were not only jumping from their horses for goals they were also thrown from their horses by other players and, sometimes, by their own teammates accidentally. The game got rougher with horses sprinting and galloping from one end of the field to the other. Menalippe got the goat often and made many goals but Penthesilea was always right there with her. They both tumbled from their horses over and over as they were tackled from the side or behind. Their horses were pushed and shoved by other horses so much it was difficult to ascertain who was pushing and who was trying to pull away from the others. Finally, in the last seconds of the game Penthesilea raced to the goal and scored an almost impossible to score toss from nearly ten feet away from the goal which, miraculously, made it completely into the goal. 

The game was over. The military had won.

Later that night, after partying and long baths, Antiope and Menalippe lay in bed curled up around each other. They whispered sweet nothings to each other but then Menalippe actually fell asleep, too tired not to. Antiope laughed to herself. That's what she got. The morning would be soon enough. She fell asleep holding her wife close.


End file.
